


Sweeter Than Wine

by letsjustsee



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Bottom Louis, Clueless Boys In Love, Fluff, Misunderstandings, One Night Stand to Dating, Smut, Strangers to Lovers, Top Harry, hp universe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-16
Updated: 2017-04-16
Packaged: 2018-10-14 13:20:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10537317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/letsjustsee/pseuds/letsjustsee
Summary: Walking up, the bass still pounding loudly in his ears, he furrowed his brow in confusion as he noticed one lone figure still sitting at the bar. Almost every other person in the club had fled to the dance floor, but here was someone that obviously hadn’t been caught up in Louis’ spell.Confused, Louis thought perhaps this muggle was just so determined to get drunk that his spell couldn’t penetrate.“You must really need a drink tonight, mate,” Louis said, his tone biting as he slid up next to the stranger and clapped him solidly on the back.The sarcastic tone he displayed a second before must not have flustered the man, because he smiled widely, his cheek dimpling endearingly.“I do, actually,” he said, gesturing to the stool next to him. “Why don’t you join me for one?”When Wizard!Louis goes to a muggle club for a change of pace, his one night stand ends up being much more than he bargained for.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lostboysoflondon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lostboysoflondon/gifts).



> Thank you to lostboysoflondon for this cute prompt, I had a blast writing it!
> 
> Title is from the song "This Magic Moment" by Ben E. King and The Drifters
> 
> Special thank you to my wonderful beta [@fogandtea](http://fogandtea.tumblr.com) for helping me through this whole process! You're the best!

The line outside the bar was ridiculous, at least a block long, but Louis strode up to the front of it confidently. Glancing left and right only briefly before approaching the bouncer, he placed his hand into his pocket and closed his fingers around his wand. The bouncer gave him one calculating look before his eyes glazed over, and he unlatched the rope allowing Louis to easily pass through.

Louis chuckled as he heard groans and complaints coming from the front of the line directed at the bouncer, who was looking at them with a mixture of confusion and annoyance. _Muggles,_ Louis thought with a heavy eye roll. He could have easily picked a wizarding club to attend, not having to worry about concealing his magic, but he had grown so bored of the typical scene lately. He had only been back in London for a few weeks, but he had started frequenting muggle hotspots more and more, unable to ignore the satisfying thrill he got from interacting with people who didn’t know about the magic he possessed.

Louis continued down the darkened hallway towards the flashing lights of the club as a loud bass pumped through the speakers. Arriving at the open doorway to the main room, he could see a dance floor that was only half full and a bar that was completely congested with the number of bodies in the tight space. Normally he would have tried to blend in, weaving in and out of the sweaty masses with careful consideration as any muggle would, but tonight he was feeling impatient. It had been a long day at work, and he craved the release that only a strong drink would provide him.

Glancing around to make sure no one was paying attention, he began casting a few harmless, nonverbal spells as he walked through the room. Nothing too extreme, just little things that would remind people they suddenly had to call their best friend, or that they really needed a smoke, or (Louis’ favorite of all) that this was their favorite song in the world, and they just had to make their way to the dance floor. Louis smiled as hordes of people started drifting towards the elevated stage, laughing and swinging their hips as they grabbed the hands of strangers to pull them along. Maybe it was manipulative, but Louis didn’t think encouraging muggles to loosen up a bit was all that damaging in the long run.

And best of all, a path had now cleared in front of him that led straight to the large bar.

Walking up, the bass still pounding loudly in his ears, he furrowed his brow in confusion as he noticed one lone figure still sitting at the bar. Almost every other person in the club had fled to the dance floor, but here was someone that obviously hadn’t been caught up in Louis’ spell.

Confused, Louis thought perhaps this muggle was just so determined to get drunk that his spell couldn’t penetrate.

“You must really need a drink tonight, mate,” Louis said, his tone biting as he slid up next to the stranger and clapped him solidly on the back.  

The man quickly turned his head to look at Louis, and Louis’ brows went from furrowed to raised as he took in the man’s appearance.

Dark hair, green eyes that glowed in the flashing lights of the club, and wide shoulders covered in a ridiculously sheer button-up. Louis swallowed.

The sarcastic tone he displayed a second before must not have flustered the man, because he smiled widely, his cheek dimpling endearingly.

“I do, actually,” he said, gesturing to the stool next to him. “Why don’t you join me for one?”

Impressed with the man’s confidence, Louis hopped up onto the adjacent stool.

“I’m Harry,” he said, extending his large hand to Louis who took it with some hesitation. “What’s your name?”

Harry had to lean closer to Louis to talk over the loud music, and he still hadn’t let go of Louis’ hand which buzzed with warmth from being engulfed in Harry’s.

Louis cleared his throat, “Um, I’m Louis.”

“Louis,” Harry said, his voice slow and deep, causing Louis to lean even more into his space to hear him over the noise. “How about that drink?”

Not a second had passed after Harry finished his question before a bartender slid two drinks in front of the pair, matching cocktails of something bright pink.

Louis quirked an eyebrow in Harry’s direction, finally being released of his tight grip on his hand.

“What’s this?”

“Just something I think you might like. This bartender’s very good,” Harry said, taking his drink immediately and sucking from his straw, tongue out first.

Louis was normally the type to just order a beer, but he took a sip from the fruity drink with some trepidation and was impressed how much he enjoyed it. It was incredibly strong, and just what he needed at the moment.

“I reckon these could be dangerous,” Louis shouted to Harry over the deafening bass drop happening around them.

“Absolutely,” Harry replied, not taking his eyes off Louis as he continued to pull from his straw.

 _This one’s going to get me in trouble_ , Louis thought, but he ignored it as quickly as it came and drank steadily, matching Harry’s pace.

\--

The music pulsed relentlessly, surrounding Louis and Harry and the sweaty bodies pressing in on them. Sometime between the fifth and sixth drinks they decided it had been a great idea to move their party of two to the dance floor. Some of Louis’ earlier spells had worn off a bit, but the majority of clubgoers were still enjoying themselves out on the raised platform.

Multicolored lights flashed as Louis and Harry moved around each other in tight circles, staying close but still not touching. Louis closed his eyes and swayed to the rhythm of the song, a deep bass coursing through him and the buzz of alcohol in his veins making him content and warm.

“Why haven’t I seen you here before?” Harry asked, startling Louis out of his daze with his lips right up next to Louis’ ear. Louis shuddered at how close Harry’s body was to his now, and he allowed himself to reach out and place his hand on Harry’s waist, holding him close as he answered him over the din of the crowd.

“I just moved to London a few weeks ago. I was in Egypt for the past year,” Louis said loudly, letting his lips linger a little longer than necessary on the shell of Harry’s ear.

Harry had instantly taken to the close proximity of the two of them, resting his large hand on the back of Louis’ shoulder. The two of them still swayed to the music, closer now but not entwined like Louis longed for.

“That’s amazing,” Harry said, incrementally pushing into Louis’ space, their torsos starting to graze each other and their hips bumped along to the beat. “What were you doing there?”

“Just working,” Louis said, leaving out the part about curse-breaking for Gringotts. In order to avoid more questions, he closed the small gap remaining between them, pulling Harry flush and beginning to grind more deeply to the music.

Harry wrapped his arms around Louis’ shoulders, dipping down slightly to accommodate for their height difference and smiling widely as they danced together.

It took Louis only a moment or two to turn himself around, moving Harry’s hands from where they were draped over his shoulders to place them on his hips, Harry pulling Louis back into him with a tight grip. Louis went pliantly, grinding backwards so there wasn’t any space left between the two of them.

Harry’s hands roamed over Louis’ waist and down over the front of Louis’ thighs. Louis was thankful for the loud music so his involuntary whimper wasn’t heard by anyone outside of himself.

Harry started nosing behind Louis’ ear, which sent shivers down Louis’ spine. He tilted his head back onto Harry’s shoulder, giving him easier access, his lips starting to brush Louis’ neck lightly.

To encourage him further, Louis reached back to wrap his arm around Harry’s neck, securing him place. Harry nibbled Louis’ ear gently, and Louis released another desperate noise which he was sure Harry heard this time, because it prompted him to begin kissing Louis’ neck in earnest, moving up and down the column of it as they continued to move in sync.

Louis lost himself a bit in the hypnotic combination of the alcohol and Harry’s hands on his body. He was oblivious of everything around them. There were hundreds of people on the dancefloor, but his awareness was limited to the drag of Harry’s lips on his neck, the caressing of his hips and waist by Harry’s large hands, the way Harry’s breath hitched slightly when Louis would grind back particularly hard.

Louis could feel Harry’s growing arousal, the noticeable bulge impossible to ignore as Louis continued to circle his hips into Harry’s.

Louis took the hand snaked around behind Harry’s neck and tugged firmly on the hair at the base of his head, causing Harry to let out a moan, the sound going straight to his cock.

“Kiss me,” he heard Harry say into his ear, his voice low and gravelly with desire.

Louis obliged, turning his face towards Harry’s where their lips met, mouths sliding wetly over each other’s. It was a filthy kiss, their tongues meeting almost immediately.

Louis closed his eyes as they continued to explore each other’s mouths, Harry’s hands roaming his body, finding the warm skin of his belly underneath Louis’ shirt. He felt dizzy, unsure if it was his drunkenness or Harry’s skin against his own.

They had stopped dancing to the music, moving together in their own rhythm, their kiss deepening even more as they exchanged heavy breaths. Louis turned around once more, Harry’s hands coming up to cup Louis’ face. Anchored by his warm, gentle touch, Louis wrapped his arms around Harry, exploring his broad back with his hands.

Harry was emitting small sounds of pleasure, only barely discernible over the noise around them. Raising up onto his tiptoes, Louis aligned their cocks, both noticeably hard in their jeans, and lowered his hands to grab at Harry’s arse. Gripping tightly, Louis pulled Harry’s body flush to his own. Echoing the other’s groans of pleasure, they both pulled back from their kiss, their foreheads resting against one another’s.

“We should- we should get out of here,” Harry said, breathing heavily as Louis lowered himself from standing on tiptoe. Louis looked into Harry’s eyes, dark with lust, the green barely visible anymore behind his blown pupils.

Louis surged up to kiss him once more, pulling back quickly to breathe out, “Yeah, yeah let’s go.”

Harry wasted no time grabbing Louis’ hand to pull him away from the dancefloor. Despite his drunken fog, Louis remembered something that needed to be done before they left together.

“Wait, Harry,” he said, pulling back on Harry’s hand to stop him from walking further. Harry turned around to look at Louis questioningly, biting his lip as he did so. “Could we just get some water before we leave? Need to sober up a bit, I think.”

Harry looked relieved at the simple request, and nodded as he changed course to walk them towards the bar. Louis huffed out a laugh at Harry’s eagerness, trying hard to remain casual. In truth, he needed a chance to slip himself and Harry the potion he had stashed in his coat pocket.

Never one for the stumbling awkwardness of drunken hook ups, Louis had long ago learned the benefits of using Rebos.

(Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes initially marketed the potion as a prank gift, used to trick your drunk friends into immediately losing their buzz. The popularity of the product skyrocketed, however, when young adults realized they could use it at the end of their drunken nights, avoiding hangovers and blackouts entirely.)

Louis had used it on more than one occasion to ensure the men he picked up in bars were of sound mind, fully able to consent to some mutually satisfying activities between the sheets. It might be considered a bit devious of Louis to drink all night with someone, only to reverse his intoxication with one sip, but Louis would rather have a sober and consenting partner than a sloppy hook up who might not remember his name in the morning.

Approaching the bar, Louis realized just how much he needed that potion himself. Grinding on the dance floor underneath the strobing lights had masked the full effects of all the drinks he and Harry consumed. Stumbling a bit behind Harry, he giggled at nothing in particular.

The scene in front of him was a bit foggy: watching Harry ask the bartender for two waters, and seeing him turn around with two plastic cups held in his large hands. Harry shimmied his hips as he walked up to Louis, performing a little cha-cha to the music, a goofy smile on his face. It seemed Harry was feeling the effects of the alcohol as well, although Louis wasn’t going to point it out. It was never wise to comment on how drunk someone was, only to have them immediately sober up magically the next second.

Louis got a bit lost in the moment, as Harry approached him and leaned in for a gentle kiss, the cups of water still held in his hands. It was a perfect opportunity to sneak the potion into both their cups, but Louis was distracted as Harry turned the soft kiss into a deeper one, pushing his tongue past Louis’ lips. Moaning into it, Louis threw one arm around Harry’s neck, trying to reach for the water with the other.

The next thing he was aware of was bringing the cup of water away from his lips, soberness overtaking him. He silently congratulated himself on being able to pull it off while terribly drunk, although it wasn’t the first time that had happened.

Looking up into Harry’s face, he saw a contemplative look on him, like he was searching Louis intently for the answer to a challenging puzzle. Louis hadn’t ever been called out on the effects of Rebos (most people were too proud to admit they suddenly lost their buzz without reason), but he wondered what Harry could be thinking that moment.

“You alright?” Harry asked, his deep voice less slurred than before, but still intensely focused on Louis.

“Yeah, absolutely,” Louis said, placing his empty water cup on a nearby table, and taking the opportunity to slide his arms around Harry’s waist. “Are you?”

“Definitely,” Harry said, instinctively returning Louis’ embrace. “Those drinks must not have been as strong as I thought.” Louis didn’t respond, not wanting to give himself away, but he nodded his head in agreement.

Hoping for a quick subject change, Louis licked his lips and timidly broached the topic of leaving.

“You still want to get out of here?”

Only once had a prospective hookup backed out after the alcohol wore off, and Louis tried not to take it too personally. But looking up at Harry’s face, he desperately hoped he wouldn’t change his mind about leaving together. Even without the effects of alcohol, Louis still felt a buzzing under his skin, the close proximity to Harry filling him with a different kind of intoxication.

The answering smile Harry gave was blinding.

“Let’s go,” Harry released Louis from his embrace and grabbed his hand once more, pulling them quickly towards the exit.

\--

The walk to Harry’s flat turned out to be a short one, only a couple blocks away from the club, and Louis spent it being kissed and giggling into Harry’s mouth as they stumbled down the sidewalk. No longer able to blame the alcohol, Louis guessed it was just the heady atmosphere pulsing between the two of them. Excitement coursed through Louis’ veins, each caress of Harry’s hands on his body, his face, sending sparks up and down his spine.

Harry was no better off, moaning quietly each time they paused to kiss deeply, tongues darting in and out of mouths teasingly.

With much difficulty, unable to go long without touching each other in some way, they finally made it up two flights of stairs and found themselves outside Harry’s door. Backing Louis up against the wall next to the doorframe, Harry kissed him slowly, softly rubbing Louis’ cheek back and forth with his thumb. With a slow inhale through his nose, Harry pulled back, looking into Louis’ eyes as he continued to caress his face.

A look of concern flashed across his features, and he glanced away from Louis’ eyes to his own door.

“Uh, could you,” he stammered, backing up slightly from Louis, but not releasing his hold on him. “Would you, um, give me a few minutes? Need to run in for just a minute or two.”

He shrugged sheepishly, and Louis’ was transfixed with his dimple as a slow smile spread across his face.

“Wasn’t expecting company,” he continued. He said it in a low, sexy tone that gave Louis butterflies, anticipation building quickly.

“No worries,” Louis said, straightening himself where he stood, watching as Harry went to hastily unlock his door. Taking a second glance at Louis, he smiled once again and ducked his head to quickly peck him on the lips, leaving Louis in the hallway before he could return the kiss with Harry shutting the door behind him.

Louis sighed contentedly, leaning back against the wall with his hands behind him. Staring up at the ceiling, he let his mind drift. Thoughts of Harry’s lips, his eyes, his large hands were making Louis hard once again, his erection never having fully flagged since kissing Harry on the dancefloor.

He was pulled out of his reverie by the sound of slamming cabinets, and Harry murmuring things that Louis couldn’t quite make out. He smiled as he thought about him rushing to clean up, although Louis couldn’t be less bothered by a messy flat. He was too focused on the urge to get Harry naked.

It was during another daydream about ripping Harry’s shirt off that the door was flung open, and Harry quickly yanked Louis inside, eliciting a yelp of surprise from him. Before he could get his bearings, the front door was once again closed, and Louis found himself backed up against it, Harry already kissing along his jaw.

“Sorry about that,” he said, coming away only briefly to apologize before returning to sucking gently on Louis’ neck. Louis closed his eyes and tilted his head back against the door.

“No need to apologize,” he said, but his voice went up significantly at the end of his sentence because Harry chose that moment to stick his thigh between Louis’ legs, allowing Louis some relief to his aching cock.

“Oh fuck,” Louis breathed out, as Harry moved from Louis’ neck back up to his mouth, meeting his lips once again with fervor.

Stumbling backwards together into the living room, they both began removing each other’s clothing – coats, belts, and shirts were lost fairly quickly.

Caught up in the task at hand, Louis couldn’t have pinpointed what magic he did exactly, but it was in the split second after he reached down to unbutton Harry’s jeans that the lights in the flat flickered.

 _Shit_ , he thought, his hands stilling. Harry had stopped his movements too, a look of concern passing over his face. It was quickly replaced with calm, however, and Louis almost wondered if he imagined Harry’s furrowed brow in the first place.

“Been having shit luck with the electricity lately,” he said, seeming like he was rushing to get the words out, different from his usual meandering pace. “They’ve been doing that at least once a day.”

Louis almost let out a sigh of relief, but caught himself in time. Instead, he gave a small smile and a nod of his head, leaning back in to kiss Harry as he resumed his mission to get them both naked as soon as possible.

“Bedroom,” Louis murmured into the space between their mouths, not hearing a reply before Harry started steering them together through the living room and into a darkened hallway.

They had both lost their jeans by the time they crossed the threshold of Harry’s room, walking as best they could while still tangled up in each other. Not having bothered turning on a light, only the moonlight leaking in from the window lit their path to the bed.

In their haste to get there, they stumbled, and before Louis could stop it the pair of them were tripping, falling fast towards the ground.

It was a reflex for Louis to think _Accio pillows_ before they hit the hardwood. Four large, downy ones flew off the bed behind Harry and piled themselves below the two of them before they had a chance to hit the ground. Harry landed on them with a soft _oof_ , Louis not far behind as he collided with Harry’s front, his hands landing on his smooth chest. Disbelief coursed through Louis – wandless magic was tricky and incredibly unpredictable, and he never, ever attempted to do it, especially in the presence of muggles. But he hadn’t been able to stop himself.

Louis had no idea what his own face looked like in the moment, but he guessed it rivaled Harry’s: wide-eyed surprise at both the fall, and the soft pillows that broke it. Louis’ mind raced with excuses, trying hard to think of what to say, when the stunned silence was broken with Harry’s giggles.

“Oops,” he said, through laughter, and Louis was helpless not to join in when Harry was so endearing. “I tried my best to clean up, but I guess I missed these in the rush. Good thing though, huh?”

Louis couldn’t believe his luck.

“Good thing,” he agreed, as he ducked back down to kiss Harry deeply.

The pillows were forgotten almost immediately as Louis sank into Harry’s hold, their bodies tangled together on the ground, warm skin on skin. Louis ran his fingers through Harry’s hair, tilting his face to kiss him thoroughly, eliciting quiet noises from Harry.

Louis reached down to thumb at Harry’s hip, fingers dipping just slightly underneath the waistband of his pants.

“Let’s take these off,” Louis murmured between their mouths, Harry nodding along before he even finished the sentence. Lifting off Harry’s body onto his knees, he slid the tight, black briefs down as Harry simultaneously reached for Louis’, both of them anxious to rid themselves of the last piece of clothing.

Louis couldn’t help but grind his hips down into Harry’s, now both completely bare, their hard cocks rubbing together. Harry released a guttural moan, and Louis swooped down to lick into his mouth once again. Shifting up Harry’s body slightly, Louis straddled his hips and started making small figure eight movements as Harry’s cock nestled tightly between his cheeks.

“Fuck,” Louis released a shaky breath, tilting his head back as his eyes closed tightly. “You’re big.”

Harry didn’t respond, seemed to be caught up in admiring Louis above him. In a whisper, almost to himself, Harry breathed out, “Feel so good”. He grabbed Louis’ hips as he thrust up firmly, his cock sliding roughly and catching slightly on Louis’ hole. They both moaned loudly, and Louis bent down to bite Harry’s lower lip, sucking it into his mouth right away to soothe the sting.

Louis felt Harry’s ragged breaths on his face as he continued down his body and sucked a deep bruise onto Harry’s collarbone. One of Harry’s hands went straight to Louis’ hair to hold him in place as his hips continued to fuck upwards, Louis grinding down to meet Harry’s every upward motion. The sustained motion was driving Louis crazy, thinking about how much better it would feel with Harry’s cock deep inside him.

A particularly loud moan from Harry was all it took for Louis to pull away from the marks he was littering across Harry’s chest to brokenly plead, “Want you in me, _fuck_ , want you- want you to fuck me.”

Harry’s hips stuttered as he pulled Louis close to him and searched for his mouth once more, connecting in a bruising kiss.

Louis lost himself in the moment, his focus narrowed down to where Harry was touching him, kissing his face, his neck, and he let out a gasp when lube-slicked fingers brushed against his hole. The gasp quickly turned into a whimper as Harry began gently circling, pressing the pads of two fingers firmly over the sensitive area.

When Harry finally pushed inside, Louis screwed his eyes up tight, biting his lip to silence himself. The deep and satisfying ache of Harry’s long fingers fucking him was almost too much as he worked him open.

It wasn’t until Louis heard Harry whisper soothingly, “Shh baby, yeah, I’ll give you whatever you want” as he anchored him with a hand on his hip and deftly inserted a third finger into his tight heat that he realized he had been murmuring a litany of _more, more, please_ interspersed with quiet whines.

Louis had never felt like this with someone he didn’t know - his body was a livewire, Harry instinctively knowing where to touch him, to kiss him, to send him closer towards the edge.

Before Louis was fully aware of what was happening Harry had pulled out his fingers and was rolling a condom down his length, and for a split second he wondered where it had come from. But then Harry was shifting Louis’ body to line up his cock, and the thick head of it was pressing against Louis’ hole, and all thoughts except _yes, fuck yes_ left his mind.

Louis groaned as Harry slid inside of him slowly, studying the details of Harry’s face - his red bitten lips, his nostrils flaring with deep breaths as he concentrated on watching Louis’ body, his hands steady on Louis’ hips.

Once he was completely seated, they both took a moment to breathe, sweaty foreheads rested against one another as Louis adjusted to the stretch. Harry drew him into a sweet, gentle kiss - just the chaste touch of lips, stark in its contrast to the frenzy Louis was feeling inside his gut.

“God, you feel so good,” Louis whispered between their mouths, and Harry rolled his hips upwards, an unconscious response to Louis praise.

“Yeah,” Louis continued. “You can- you can move.” He started lifting his hips incrementally up and down, just testing out the movement, and Harry moaned while closing his eyes.

They worked up to a steady rhythm, Louis bouncing in Harry’s lap with his arms on his shoulders as Harry thrust up to meet him each time - his fingertips surely leaving bruises on Louis’ hips.

“Fuck, Louis,” Harry said, his voice low and gravelly. Louis was trying hard not to lose himself completely in the sensation of how good Harry’s cock felt inside him, consciously tightening himself around Harry with each thrust, determined to make it good for him too. They were both steadily unraveling, their sweaty chests sliding against one another, hands roaming and mouths crashing every so often into increasingly sloppy kisses.

“You feel so fucking good, Louis,” Harry sputtered out after a particularly searing kiss, wrenching back from Louis’ lips to confess quickly. “Wanted to fuck you all night, you’re so gorgeous.”

Louis shut his eyes and whined, high pitched. The compliments Harry uttered licked over his skin like fire and the sensations radiating through his body from where they were connected set him ablaze.

“I’m close, shit- I’m so close,” Louis admitted, the stimulation from Harry’s cock relentless. Harry reached between them, stroking Louis in time with his thrusts, losing the rhythm a bit as he lost composure, seeming to be just as close as Louis was.

“Fuck yeah, don’t stop,” Louis begged, too close to coming to feel self-conscious of the whine in his voice. He sucked a bruise into the sensitive skin where Harry’s jaw and neck met, and it was enough to send Harry over the edge. Louis could feel his cock pulsing inside the condom, but Harry didn’t let go of Louis, continued to stroke him quickly and firmly until Louis’ vision whited out.

Louis exclamations became incoherent as his own orgasm rolled through his body.  Harry covered his mouth in a deep kiss, swallowing Louis’ words as his cock spurted warmly between them, covering Harry’s fist.

They came down together breathing heavily, Louis leaning his weight against Harry’s chest as he recovered.

He chuckled softly against Harry’s neck as he said, “Didn’t even make it to the bed.”

Harry huffed out a laugh as he pulled out of Louis, tying the condom and chucking it aside.

“Well,” he said, shifting to brace himself and holding onto Louis’ bum tightly. “I can fix that.”

Louis yelped in surprise as Harry stood, lifting Louis along with him, and unceremoniously tossed him onto the bed, falling half on top of him a second later. He dissolved into giggles as Harry started kissing across his chest and neck softly.

“Is that better?” Harry asked between kisses, rubbing Louis tummy gently. Louis was feeling boneless, his body sinking into the mattress but Harry’s touches were electric across his skin.

Louis wriggled out from under Harry and turned his body so that they were facing each other. He cupped Harry’s face, thumbing gently across his cheekbone.

“Much,” he said, before leaning in to capture Harry’s lips in a slow kiss. Harry let out a contented sigh and wrapped his arm around Louis’ waist, holding him close. Louis pulled away to softly nuzzle at Harry’s neck, nipping his jaw.

Louis breathed in Harry’s smell, sweet mixed with the musk of sex and an undertone of something Louis couldn’t identify but that had his head swimming. The warmth from their bodies radiated between them, and Harry cleared his throat.

“Um, Louis,” Harry said, sounding hesitant. Louis acknowledged him with a quiet _hmm_ as he continued to trace kisses along his jawline. Harry took a deep breath before quietly murmuring one word.

“Stay?”

Louis smiled into his neck, pulling back to see the hopeful look on Harry’s face.

“Okay.”

Harry exhaled and smiled back.

“Okay,” he said, pulling Louis even closer, their limbs tangled up together.

“I just,” Louis said, making to get out of bed. “Just need to-” Louis disentangled himself from Harry’s sweaty body, and Harry whined softly as he made grabby hands to try and get Louis back into bed.

Louis chuckled gently. “Just need to pee, love,” he said, walking backwards towards the corridor, watching as Harry stretched languidly on the bed, his naked body still unabashedly on display. “I’ll be right back.”

“Hurry,” Harry said quietly, the smile evident in his voice.

Louis couldn’t stop smiling as he quickly made his way out of the bedroom, passing the door to the toilet as silently as he could. Stumbling a bit in the dark, hoping that Harry couldn’t hear his movements in the flat, he went back to his discarded clothes strewn about the living room.

Kneeling down to grab his coat, Louis first checked that his wand was safely hidden in his deep pocket. He couldn’t afford to have Harry waking up to find it lying on the ground in the living room.

Once satisfied the wand wasn’t going to dislodge itself from the coat, he carefully draped it over the back of a chair facing away from him. Noticing an unexpected bulge in the left side pocket, Louis reached his hand in blindly to retrieve whatever was in there.

He pulled out the tiny bottle of Rebos, forgetting that he must have stashed the bottle back in his coat after using it. Thinking nothing of it, he went to return it to the pocket when it dawned on him that the small bottle was still full and unopened.

Furrowing his brow deeply as he stared at the potion in his hands, he thought fruitlessly back to the bar. The moment he could have sworn he poured it into his and Harry’s water was surrounded in a drunken fuzziness, and he was unable to put the pieces together.

Too exhausted to exert himself further, he shrugged to no one in particular. Maybe he brought two bottles without realizing. It didn’t matter anymore. Replacing it back into the pocket, he noiselessly tiptoed back down the hallway, stopping for a quick wee on the way.

When he got back to Harry’s room, he heard the sound of light snoring from the bed, and took a moment to watch Harry breathing calmly, lying on his side with the duvet pulled back, as if he was waiting for Louis to come and join him.

Louis didn’t hesitate long before he did just that, crawling in beside Harry and snuggling up close to him. Harry snuffled a bit in his sleep, unconsciously wrapping a long arm around Louis’ waist and pulling him flush against himself. Louis smiled as he nuzzled into Harry’s warm chest, tucking a leg between both of Harry’s, and drifting off into a peaceful sleep.

\--

The most important thing at a time like this, Harry knew, was _not to panic._ He knew this implicitly, and yet his very first instinct upon waking up with Louis beside him was just that.

He had let a muggle spend the night.

He had let a muggle spend the night in his very magic-filled flat, and they had sex. It was incredible, mind blowing, life changing sex, but that didn’t fix the problem of Louis being a muggle currently asleep in Harry’s bed. Harry allowed himself only a moment of fond gazing at Louis sleeping beside him, trailing his eyes over his messy hair, his gorgeous cheekbones, down his smooth back to where the sheets bunched around his waist.

Knowing what was underneath those sheets was stirring something in his gut, so Harry fought the urge to touch and instead quietly slipped out of bed. If he was going to panic, he wasn’t going to do it where Louis might wake up and see.

Instead, he silently padded his way to the kitchen, stopping suddenly in his hallway to double check the pictures. Still not moving, that was good. He had done a hurried job last night of hiding the many traces of magic throughout his flat, while making Louis wait in the hallway.

Charms had been cast to immobilize the photographs that adorned most of his walls, bottles of potions ingredients were hastily thrown into random cupboards, and his beloved barn owl Hoodini was sent out into the night with a mumbled apology and strict instructions to go stay at his sister’s place until at least the next day. He hadn’t had time to disguise the large cage still sitting in his living room, but he hoped Louis wouldn’t mention it.

Raking a nervous hand through his hair, Harry wondered what he should do. He had slept with muggles before, but never in his own home. There had been something incredibly intoxicating about Louis, something otherworldly, and he had been helpless to ignore the strong urge he had the previous night to bring Louis home with him – to have him in his own bed, to have his sheets smell like Louis.

Without Hoodini, he couldn’t send a quick note to Gemma. She would have known what to do, she always did. His older sister may be quick to take a jab at Harry’s poor life decisions, but she would have taken his panic seriously in a moment like this.

Taking a deep breath, he made his way to the kitchen. He could make breakfast. That, at least, he could do.

In no time, the familiar sounds of bacon sizzling and eggs frying filled Harry’s flat. He stood over the griddle, flipping pancakes by hand – he knew that his magic could do it just as well, but there was something about making a perfect pancake on his own that he took pride in. The bacon and eggs, however, were being tended to with floating utensils, dutifully turning and prodding them as they hissed and popped with grease.

He was so caught up in his current pancake, he didn’t hear Louis making his way down the hallway towards the kitchen.

“Great place you’ve got here, didn’t really get a look at it last night.”

Louis was next to the open doorway, his body angled away from the stove as he peered into Harry’s living room. Harry gave a shout of surprise, and the spatulas that were previously working unmanned fell to the ground with a deafening clatter. Grease from the bacon and bits of egg speckled the floor as Harry felt his face heat up.

“Uh, Louis, I- uh,” Harry stammered ungracefully. At the sound, Louis had snapped his head towards the kitchen, and Harry saw him take in the scene – Harry in just his boxers with pancakes slowly burning behind him.

“Between tripping last night and dropping things this morning,” Louis said, a smile overtaking his face as he made his way towards Harry with purpose, “I think it’s safe to say you have quite the unlucky streak Haz. That or you’re just incredibly clumsy.”

Harry was helpless not to smile back as Louis got closer, reaching his arms around Harry’s waist to embrace him. Harry’s breath hitched at the feel of skin on skin, Louis wearing a loose pair of Harry’s joggers he must have found on the floor. Harry buried his nose in his fluffy hair, taking in the scent of him as Louis gently scratched his nails along Harry’s back.

He pulled back and looked up at Harry, smirking.

“Good morning,” he said, and stretched up on his tiptoes to gently peck Harry on the lips.

When he tried to back away, Harry made a quiet noise of protest and cupped his face, keeping him where he was so they could kiss deeply.

Louis responded immediately, pliantly molding his body closer to Harry’s so there was nothing between them – just skin and warmth and electricity. Their tongues moved together, and Harry let out a sigh of contentment which made Louis pull back and chuckle.

“Heyyy,” Harry said, pouting.

Louis just looked up at him with crinkly eyes and rubbed his back.

“You’re cute, Curly.”

Harry’s cheeks reddened once again, and a pleasant feeling swooped through his gut. He walked backwards with Louis until they hit the countertop in the kitchen, the pancakes all but forgotten about. Louis hands roamed Harry’s sides, and Harry stifled a tremble that ran through him. He cursed himself for being so reckless with his magic when a muggle was still in his flat, but he couldn’t complain about the position he had Louis in now. And it’s not like Louis had seen Harry brandishing his wand.

_Oh shit – wand._

Harry realized suddenly, his eyes going wide, that his wand was on the counter behind him. His body blocked it now, but Louis only had to lean around him and he would see it easily.

Trying as best he could to keep Louis’ attention away from it, he ducked back down and fucked into his mouth with his tongue. Louis whimpered and closed his eyes tightly, allowing Harry to reach behind himself and grasp the wand.

Using a nonverbal spell, he turned the stovetop off - the pancakes were a lost cause at this point anyway. As stealthily as possible, using the hand still wrapped around his wand, he inched open the drawer situated right behind his lower back. Louis was still distracted, as Harry tried hard to place his attention both on the gorgeous boy in front of him and the task at hand. When there was just enough room for his wand to slip in, he released his grip on it and scooted backwards quickly to shut it.

Louis giggled at the sudden jolt in their bodies, his weight now fully against Harry’s chest as they leaned against the counter together.

“Were you making me breakfast?” Louis asked, curious eyes darting over to the stove where the bacon and eggs sat, fully cooked now in their respective pans. A plate of finished, unburnt pancakes sat off to the side, and Harry scratched the back of his neck sheepishly.

“Maybe,” he said slowly, turning their bodies around so that Louis now leaned against the counter. His hands slid over his hips and reached around to squeeze at his bum. “Think I found something better to occupy my time though.”

And without hesitation, Harry dropped to his knees in front of Louis, latching his mouth onto the soft skin below his navel.

Louis let out a gasp of surprise, and his hands immediately went to gently tangle in Harry’s hair.

He moaned quietly as Harry sucked harder, bruising the skin and pulling away with a smack to leave it shiny and wet.

“Oh shit,” Louis sounded breathless already without Harry having properly touched him yet. Harry busied himself trailing wet kisses above Louis’ waistband, taking particular care right over the dark trail of hair that led downwards.

“Can I, Lou?” Harry looked up into Louis’ eyes, and he could hear the note of pleading in his own voice but he didn’t care. A deep need was curling in his gut to touch Louis, to taste him.

Louis had barely nodded his head when Harry quickly lowered his joggers, revealing nothing underneath except for Louis’ already hardening cock.

“No pants?” Harry said, a hint of teasing to his voice, and Louis released a breathy chuckle.

“Would have just wasted time, don’t you- ahh,” Louis was cut off by Harry licking a broad stripe from the base of his cock to the tip, closing his lips around Louis and tasting a tiny bit of salty precum. “Don’t- don’t you think?”

It sounded like Louis was struggling to maintain control of his speech as Harry swirled his tongue around him slowly. He took pleasure in the effect he was having on Louis and he felt his own arousal begin to stir.

“Mmhmm,” Harry agreed, one hand wrapping around Louis’ base while the other steadied him at his hip. “Definitely would have wasted time.” He stopped only briefly to respond before diving back in, relishing the noises Louis was already releasing as he hardened under his tongue.

Harry lost himself for a while in the act, hypnotized by Louis’ taste, the weight of his hard cock on his tongue. He pressed the heel of his other hand into his own erection, straining at his boxers, and couldn’t resist letting himself free and stroking quickly, fast approaching the edge from the sounds Louis was making above him.

It wasn’t until Louis murmured “Shit, so close” and accidentally yanked a little too hard on his hair that Harry let himself go. Moaning around Louis’ cock, he spilled over his hand as Louis’ own release filled his mouth.

After that split second of euphoria Harry became aware that the kettle was now emitting an ear piercing whistle, boiling rapidly without the hob having been touched.

 _Shit,_ he thought, _how the fuck did I do that?_

His post orgasm brain struggled to catch up, and he knew he needed to get off the floor and start making excuses to Louis about how a kettle could boil without the help of the stove, but he heard Louis stutter before he could make his move.

“Oh fuck, I’m sorry. Sorry, my fault,” Louis half turned away from Harry towards the oven, fiddling with the knobs behind him where Harry couldn’t see. “Accidentally turned it on. Stupid me.”

Louis carefully lifted the kettle onto a different burner, as the whistling died down the kitchen was left in a fragile quiet.

Harry was relieved. Apparently his magic hadn’t done something wonky while he was getting him and Louis off, it was just the slip of Louis’ hand. No harm done.

Harry began to rise from the ground and winced a bit as the audible crack in his knees shattered the silence. “It’s okay,” he said.

“You alright there?” Louis looked at him with a devilish grin as Harry pouted a bit and tried to shake out his legs.

“Yeah, yeah,” he said, pressing his hands into his lower back and arching a bit to stretch. “I’m good.” As soon as his hands dropped back to his side, Louis slid his arms around Harry’s waist and pulled him into a soft kiss.

“That was amazing,” he said, rubbing soothingly at Harry’s lower back. “Can I return the favor?”

“Uh,” Harry stammered, chuckling a little and reaching for a paper towel to wipe his hand. “I, uh- sorry.” He looked sheepishly at Louis who saw him cleaning his hand off, his eyes widening in understanding.

“Oh,” he said, his surprised expression transforming quickly into an amused one. “That good, huh?”

“I just like it,” Harry huffed out indignantly, pouting a little. Louis smiled and kissed him on the cheek.

“I think it’s hot, actually.”

“Oh yeah?” Harry asked, blushing.

“Yeah,” Louis said, kissing his other cheek, then his nose, and finally his mouth, where Harry made a contented noise and wrapped Louis in a tight hug. Louis pulled back with a smack, “Should we eat breakfast? Don’t want it to get cold.”

“Uh, oh yeah,” Harry said, realizing that magically reheating food might be something Louis would notice, and quickly went about serving up the eggs, bacon, and pancakes on plates. “Have a seat,” he said, grandly gesturing to the small dining table.

“Well thank you,” Louis said, smiling as Harry slid the plate in front of him. “It looks amazing.”

He breathed in the aromas of the food in front of him, digging in heartily as he moaned in appreciation.

“Good?” Harry asked proudly.

“It’s so good,” Louis agreed, shoveling bites into his mouth as Harry sat opposite him and dug in as well. Harry’s stomach gave a little flip as he felt Louis hook his ankle around his under the table.

“So tell me about Egypt,” Harry ventured, taking a long pull of his orange juice.

“Oh, uh-,” Louis chuckled nervously. “Forgot that I mentioned that.” Harry watched as Louis wiped his mouth, took a sip from his drink, and wiped his mouth again.

“It really wasn’t anything special.”

“Oh come on,” Harry said, rolling his eyes fondly at the modesty. “A year in Egypt? Even if it was for work, that had to have been cool.”

“Alright, it was pretty cool,” Louis admitted, shrugging a bit. “The pyramids are sick.” Louis’ eyes crinkled with the smile that spread across his face.

“I bet,” Harry said, smiling back. Louis’ eyes lit up as he began to tell Harry about the interesting places he was able to visit, the new foods he tried, and even the camel ride he attempted.

“Camels are very misunderstood creatures, you know,” Louis said seriously, making Harry snort into his plate.

“Oh really?” Harry quirked an eyebrow.

“Absolutely,” Louis said with finality, and winked at Harry for good measure.

“So other than riding camels, what exactly were you doing there? You didn’t say what line of work you were in, I don’t think.”

Louis wiped his mouth with a napkin for a long moment, Harry watching him in interest.

“Oh, I’m just in banking. It’s pretty boring to be honest,” Louis pushed the leftover bites of pancakes around on his plate, not looking at Harry as he spoke. “The Egypt trip was the most exciting thing to happen to me in a while. Just a typical desk job, you know?”

Harry nodded, pursing his lips. Louis didn’t really strike him as a banker, but the surprise of it intrigued him.

“And you, Harold? What is it that you get up to during your days?”

Harry smirked at the nickname but didn’t acknowledge it.

“I’m a photographer.”

“Ah,” Louis said, snapping his fingers. “I should have guessed. You’ve got quite the gallery in your hallway.”

Harry’s cheeks reddened, both at the compliment and his nerves over the freezing charms he cast.

“Thanks,” he said softly. “Really it just started as a hobby, but I got lucky. Now I get paid to do it.”

“Would I have seen your work anywhere?”

Harry took a big bite of pancake to avoid answering for a few long seconds. Chewing, he tried to think of a way around the question. ‘Photographer for _The_ _Daily Prophet’_ wasn’t exactly something he could share.

“Probably not,” he admitted. “The publication I take pictures for isn’t well known, but it pays the bills.” He tried to quickly change the subject. “Honestly I’d love to shift more into freelancing, or having my own business. I try to do that as much as I can on the side.”

“Well you’ve got talent, kid.”

Harry laughed appreciatively at that. “Oh yeah? Have you got the eye for it then?”

“Absolutely,” Louis deadpanned, nodding his head slowly. “It’s one of my many skills.”

“Well then I am honored, truly.” Louis’ serious expression broke at that statement and he giggled along with Harry. “So how is it being back in London after living in Egypt for a year? Did you miss it?”

“Actually, I spent most of my childhood in America.” Harry listened intently as Louis described how his stepfather got a job in Boston when Louis was young, and then attending a boarding school a few hours away.

“Hey, I went to boarding school too,” Harry piped up without thinking, immediately regretting it when Louis’ eyes lit up in recognition of their shared experience.

“Really? You don’t meet many people who can say that anymore.”

“Uh, yeah,” Harry cleared his throat. What was he thinking? He couldn’t honestly answer any of Louis’ questions about Hogwarts without some serious fabrication of the truth. Better to divert the attention elsewhere.

“I um,” he started, face flushing. “I had a lot of fun last night.”

Louis’ answering smile was bashful, but he looked pleased.

“I did too.”

They fell into a companionable silence as they both finished up their breakfast, Harry not sure how to broach the topic of seeing each other again. Even though he was still near Louis, he wanted nothing more than to curl up around him, keep him by his side all day, fall into bed with him again. But he didn’t know if that was too much too soon. Was this just a one night stand?

“I can see the wheels turning from over here, Curly,” Louis said good naturedly. Harry looked up in confusion and saw Louis giving him a sympathetic smile. “Your brow is furrowed deeper than that dimple of yours. What are you thinking about?”

“You,” Harry said honestly, without overthinking it.

“Well shit,” Louis said. “I hope I’m not causing you to get wrinkles.”

He got up from his seat and motioned for Harry to pull his chair out a bit. Once he did, Louis straddled this thighs and placed a hand on each side of Harry’s face. He studied his face for a moment, before leaning in to give him a gentle kiss.

“Can I see you again?”

Harry let go of a deep breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.

“I’d like that.”

\--

“Why is this place always such a mess?” Louis asked, watching as Niall flitted around his living room.

“It’s not a mess,” Niall said distractedly. “It’s perfectly organized.”

Louis took in the empty potions vials on the coffee table, the dried herbs scattered in piles next to them (some of them spilling onto the floor), and the scale which was tipped far to one side under the weight of some very shiny stones.

“Whatever you say mate,” Louis said, going back to his game of FIFA while Niall muttered under his breath. He was standing in a corner of the room behind Louis, back hunched over his cauldron as it bubbled and steamed, his hair sticking to his sweaty forehead as he meticulously added ingredient after ingredient.

“What exactly are you making anyway?”

“Just dabbling,” Niall said.

Louis rolled his eyes to himself. How many times had he heard that from his best friend? _Just dabbling_ usually meant just making something completely illegal.

Niall may have worked for the ministry, but most of his spare time was spent huddled over his cauldron producing countless potions.

“And what would Shacklebolt say if he found out one of his very own employees was peddling unregulated potions from his living room?”

“I think he’d say ‘Good on ya, Horan’. Shacklebolt is a man of opportunity, just like me.”

“You’re so full of shit,” Louis laughed loudly.

“Hey, pass me a moonstone please?”

Louis picked up one of the polished rocks from the scale and tossed it over his shoulder without looking.

“Fucker! Be careful,” Niall said, having caught the stone easily. Louis heard a sizzle and a pop, and suddenly the room was filled with some incredible smells.

“Shit. That smells so good Ni. What the hell are you making?”

“It’s amortentia.”

“You’re brewing a fucking love potion?” Louis paused his game and turned around on the couch to stare at Niall. “Having trouble getting some lately?”

“Oh fuck off. Weasley’s pays top dollar for this kind of shit. It’s just business. Plus I get to smell mum’s Sunday Roast, so it’s a win-win.” Niall’s voice took on a teasing tone as he asked, “What do you smell Lou?”

Louis, though, was unashamed.

“Well I definitely smell grass from the pitch. And,” Louis paused to sniff the air, “I think beeswax and sandalwood from my broomstick polishing kit, but there’s something else there. God what is that?”

Louis was mostly talking to himself now, caught up in the scent of something incredible. It was familiar to him, but he was having trouble remembering where it was from.

“Makes my head swim a bit,” he quietly admitted.

Niall snorted.

“Well shit, you in love Lou?”

Louis didn’t answer, choosing instead to focus back on the controller in his hand.

“What the hell man,” Niall yelled, coming around the cauldron and plopping himself on the couch next to Louis. “Are you dating someone? And you didn’t tell me?” Niall sounded affronted.

“I mean, it’s nothing serious,” Louis said, but his shy tone gave away more than he meant to.

“You fucker,” Niall said, but he was smiling. “Tell me everything.”

Louis recounted meeting Harry at the club and their night together, leaving out how enamored he already was, although he could hear it in his own voice as he spoke.

Niall was smiling brightly by the time he finished. He patted Louis on the back as he said, “I’m proud of you Lou. In London less than a month, and you’ve already got yourself a boyfriend.”

“I mean, I don’t know what we are. We’ve only hung out the one time,” Louis shrugged, still fiddling with the pause button on the controller.

“But you’re going to see each other again?”

“Yeah,” Louis said, a smile creeping onto his face. “Later today actually.”

“Boyfriends,” Niall said definitively, still patting Louis comfortingly on the back.

Louis laughed, but then his smile faltered as he quietly admitted, “He’s a muggle.”

“What? Niall said, his grip on Louis’ shoulder becoming vicelike.

“He’s a-“

“I fucking heard what you said. You’re dating a muggle?”

Louis knew what Niall’s point was, but chose to focus on only part of the question as he mumbled, “I told you, I don’t know if we’re dating.”

Niall ignored Louis’ runaround completely. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

The question rang out in the quiet room, only the sounds of the cauldron bubbling behind them to break it up. Louis had successfully avoided thinking about the repercussions of sleeping with a muggle up until now, choosing to focus instead on all the reasons he and Harry could be perfect for each other.

When Louis didn’t immediately answer, Niall barreled on.

“I mean, I love you Lou, I do. I want you to be happy. But don’t you remember what happened to Liam?”

Louis furrowed his brow in frustration. Niall’s coworker Liam was someone they occasionally hung out with, and right before Louis left for Egypt he had come to them heartbroken. The muggle he had been seeing for over a year had fucked off as soon as Liam admitted his magic. Louis had never even seen Liam frown, so watching him cry over the person he thought loved him was horrible. In the end, Liam had to erase the memories of their relationship from his ex’s mind, vowing never to get involved with a muggle again.

“That,” Louis said, pausing for a long time. “That was different.”

But he could hear the resignation in his own voice.

“How was it different? You said you’ve only been on one sort-of date with this guy, and Liam was ready to propose. You really think this Harry is so special?”

Louis tried to push down the defensive arguments of _he is different, fuck you_ that were trying to claw their way out of him, but Niall could sense his anger simmering just under the surface.

“Look,” he said, softening his tone. “I just worry about ya. You’re my best friend, and I would probably end up killing anyone who broke your heart. And I’m not fit for Azkaban mate.”

Louis gave a halfhearted smile.

“Hey, you’re seeing him again today, yea?” Louis nodded his head. “I don’t want to deter you. Maybe he is as great as you say he is. I just… I don’t like you having to hide something this big. And if it’s not gonna be a forever kind of thing, I mean…”

Niall trailed off, and Louis could no longer meet his gaze. They stopped talking about it after that, and Niall attempted to lighten the mood by playing a round of FIFA with Louis, but he couldn’t stop wondering after that if he was making a huge mistake. Was getting involved with Harry a bad move? Eventually he gave up trying to be social, and he made some flimsy excuse to show himself out, cursing all the way home.

\--

Despite Niall’s warnings, Louis couldn’t tamp down the excitement that was bubbling up inside him as he made his way to Harry’s flat later that evening. They had agreed to meet up there before heading to an early dinner around the corner, and Louis tried to slow his pace as he got closer to Harry’s block.

“Chill out Tomlinson,” he scolded himself, ascending the stairs inside Harry’s building at a meandering pace. He wiped his palms on his shirt before taking a deep breath and knocking loudly on the door.

“Come in,” he heard Harry shout from inside the apartment, and he swung open the door.

Music was playing quietly in the living room, but Harry was nowhere to be seen.

“Harry?” Louis asked, peeking around the wall into the empty kitchen.

“Hey Lou,” Harry said, poking his head out of the bedroom door, smiling widely. Louis’ stomach flip flopped when their eyes met. “Wow, you look amazing”

Louis’ cheeks reddened and he shifted his weight from foot to foot, not knowing what to say.

“I’m almost ready, give me five minutes?”

“Take your time,” Louis said, heading to the couch to take a seat. As he was about to flop down, he noticed that the bottom shelf of one of the bookcases was chock full of an array of cameras.

“Oh cool,” he muttered, making his way closer to inspect them. There were at least ten cameras strewn about the large shelf, and Louis knelt down to take a closer look. He picked up one to inspect it, wondering if Harry used these old fashioned ones, and smiling at the thought of him concentrating on his subject, probably biting his lip as he studied something beautiful through a lens.

He glanced at the others, before doing a quick double take as his gut dropped. He all but threw the antique camera that was in his hands to the side as he went for the one his eyes were stuck on.

“Fuck,” he whispered, inspecting the object closer like it was going to give him the answers to the questions racing through his head. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.”

Who the fuck was selling wizard cameras to muggles? Where had Harry even gotten this? This was not good, and Louis was starting to panic.

He didn’t even notice Harry coming up behind him until he heard a very nervous sounding “Um”.

Louis startled, but kept a firm grasp on the camera as he stood up straight and turned around.

Harry’s eyes were fixed on the camera in Louis’ hands, but Louis didn’t know what to say. _Do the pictures from this one move?_ probably wasn’t the safest line of questioning.

Harry chuckled and ran a hand through his hair, “Weird camera, huh?”

Louis glanced down at it once again, swallowing loudly.

“I picked that up in a thrift shop up north. Thought it looked funny. Doesn’t actually work though, unfortunately.”

Harry gently took the camera out of Louis’ grasp, and Louis watched as he flipped some dials and turned it over in his hands examining it thoroughly.

“It’s a shame though, I bet it would be fun to use.” He set the camera carefully back on the lowest shelf and gave Louis a quizzical look as he straightened back up.

Louis realized belatedly that Harry’s hesitation was most likely a result of Louis going through his things without permission.

“I’m uh,” he cleared his throat, “I’m really sorry, I should have asked if I could pick these up.”

“Oh it’s okay,” Harry said, squeezing Louis’ shoulder affectionately. “I really don’t mind. You ready to go though?”

“Absolutely,” Louis said, happy for an excuse to get out of there. He was going to have to mention this to Niall though.

Someone had to make sure those cameras stopped falling into muggle hands.

\--

Somehow their early dinner had turned into a late night date without either of them noticing. It seemed as though hardly any time had passed, and yet when Louis glanced up it was to see the waitress switching off the neon Open sign out front, the realization dawning on him that they had closed the place down. Despite the fact that they had simply been hanging out in a cheap diner, this was quickly becoming his favorite date that he’d ever been on.

Somewhere after the first hour of dinner, Louis had bumped Harry’s ankles underneath the table, hesitating only for a second before wrapping his around the back of Harry’s leg. Harry had blushed but otherwise not said anything.

Louis found that conversation flowed easily with Harry making it impossible to be bored. He answered Louis questions with long, meandering stories that he would have taken the piss out of anyone else for, but he found himself listening intently to what Harry had to say. Harry made genuine inquiries into Louis’ life while fixing him with an unwavering gaze as he spoke that gave Louis chills.

Harry made Louis feel like he was the only person that mattered, and it was so unlike how his dates usually went - filled with awkward laughter and uncomfortable pauses each side trying to figure out the angle of the other. It was refreshing and a little terrifying with how easy it all was. 

Now, as the diner had completely emptied save for the employees, Louis realized that he was in far deeper than he had initially thought. He knew what Niall would say, but at the moment he didn’t care – he wasn’t ready for whatever this was to end.

“We’re closing up soon loves,” the waitress approached their table, looking reluctant to interrupt their date.

“Sorry about that,” Harry apologized, shrugging at her with a sheepish look.

“It’s quite alright dears,” she smiled at them brightly. She added happily, “It’s been awhile since I’ve seen two individuals as wrapped up in one another as you two have been. I think someone must have slipped a love potion into your drinks.”

Years of hearing his mum warn him about the repercussions of using a love potion on anyone had Louis’ ears perking up immediately, and his involuntary reaction was to loudly exclaim “No, no”.

A beat passed before he realized he hadn’t been the only one to say something – Harry had also spoken up at the waitress’s suggestion with his own rebuke, loudly saying “No way” with a head shake.

They caught each other’s eye and laughed at the coincidence, Louis’ cheeks turning red and Harry biting into his bottom lip.

The waitress giggled at their reactions, adding, “Alright, alright. My mistake.”

“I just mean-“ Harry started, as Louis also spoke up.

“Well, see-“

Again they paused, and Louis looked down at the table embarrassed.

“He wouldn’t have needed to use a love potion.”

Louis’ gaze shifted quickly to Harry, who was looking at him fondly.

“Oh, I see Curly,” Louis said, teasing, “An expert on love potions are we?”

“I dabble,” Harry said, shrugging.

Louis laughed loudly, and turned to the waitress only to find she had already moved on to the other side of the restaurant.

He turned back to find Harry fixing him with a piercing gaze.

He reached across the table and grabbed Louis’ hand, their fingers naturally tangling together, hands a perfect fit.

Rubbing his thumb across Louis’ knuckles, he said, “I mean it, ya know.”

Louis tilted his head in a silent question.

“No love potion needed. All joking aside, I really am very enamored with you Louis.”

Louis bit his lip to try and suppress his smile, but Harry could probably see the crinkles around his eyes anyway.

“I’ve got a busy week coming up,” Louis offered, “but can we do this again next weekend?”

Harry’s face lit up with a beaming smile, pausing a moment before replying, “I’d love that.”

\--

“And his eyes, Gem, I mean- shit.” Harry’s voice trailed off as he placed the quill he had been examining back on the shelf, and turning to face his sister he was met by her unimpressed look.

“You’ve mentioned them already,” she said, sounding bored, turning to walk towards the front of the shop. “Come on, I need to go to Flourish and Blotts, and then you’re buying me ice cream at Fortescue’s.”

Harry had agreed to accompany his sister to Diagon Alley, but they had only been together about half an hour before she started complaining about his topic of choice.

“And please don’t start talking about his bum again,” she added as Harry followed her out the door and into the bright sunlight of afternoon.

Harry rolled his eyes. As if he would make the mistake of talking about Louis’ bum to his sister… again. She had already been quick to shut that particular topic of conversation down first thing this morning, and Harry had only been a tiny bit sullen.

“I’m sorry Gems.” Harry said as he wrapped an arm around her, guiding her past a group of witches gossiping loudly on the cobblestones. “I just, I don’t know. I mean-"

“You’re in love,” Gemma finished for him, with an air of certainty that made Harry laugh.

“I don’t know about that, but I definitely like him.”

“Well you made that abundantly clear the nine times you described the different ways his hair falls,” she elbowed him in the side good naturedly. As Flourish and Blotts came into view, she looked up at Harry. “What did you say his surname was? Do we know his family?”

Harry unwrapped himself from around her shoulders and rushed to hold the door open for her, letting a few more customers pass by before ducking inside. Gemma was already perusing the used books table, and Harry hoped she wouldn’t notice his failure to answer her question.

“Oh that’s a good one, you should definitely read it,” Harry commented, watching as Gemma examined an autobiography before returning the book to the table and meeting his eyes. She raised her eyebrows in question, and he tried his best to look surprised. “What?”

“What’s Louis’ last name? He’s not pureblood is he, you know grandpa would never forgive you.”

“Um, no,” Harry cleared his throat, thumbing the spine of the book in front of him and refusing to meet Gemma’s eyes any longer. “He’s, he’s not-"

“Harry,” Gemma said firmly, and Harry’s head snapped up quickly to meet her calculating gaze. “What is it?”

“He’s a muggle,” Harry blurted out, eyes going wide as Gemma’s narrowed in confusion. Once the words sank in she shot Harry an identical look – eyes wide, face comically shocked.

“What?”

“He’s a-"

“I heard you, keep your fucking voice down,” Gemma sounded scandalized, glancing around the quiet shop nervously. Harry’s face fell and his gut dropped. He knew her reaction wouldn’t be stellar, but he didn’t expect anger.

“Come on, let’s go. We need to talk about this somewhere else,” Gemma grabbed him by the elbow and marched him back outside into the sunlight, striding through Diagon Alley purposefully, not bothering to see who she was bumping into. Harry mumbled quietly _I’m so sorry_ and _Oh excuse us_ , hoping that people would forgive their rudeness.

It wasn’t until they were marching through the doors of the Leaky Cauldron, full of lunch patrons chatting loudly over Butterbeers and Firewhisky, that she turned around and looked him in the face.

Falling into an empty seat, she gestured to the one across the table from her and offered only a curt, “Explain.”

So Harry explained. He told Gemma about meeting Louis in a muggle club, about secretly slipping him Rebos to ensure that they were both sober and on the same page, about why Hoodini mysteriously showed up at her place late that night (and wouldn’t leave until the following afternoon), about their latest date, and all the details in between that he could remember.

By the end of it, Gemma was anxiously chewing on a fingernail and bouncing her leg beneath the table. Harry had tried not to let too much excitement leak into his storytelling, but he could tell Gemma was frustrated – even he could hear how enamored he sounded when talking about Louis, and now was probably not the best time to showcase that.

“So, yeah,” he trailed off lamely, watching Gemma hesitantly, fearful of what she would say.

She sighed heavily, removing her finger from her mouth and taking in Harry silently.

“I really like him, Gem,” Harry said lamely, feeling like a petulant child.

She pursed her lips before taking a deep breath and stating simply, “It’s a bad idea, Harry.”

Harry’s shoulders slumped and his heart dropped. He was embarrassed, but his eyes unwillingly filled with unshed tears, and he tried to blink them away. He knew, logically, that he was an adult who could make his own decisions, but hearing Gemma’s stern tone broke something inside of him. He tuned back in to hear Gemma rambling advice.

“And I can’t even believe you would let it get this far. You _know_ my best friend in the entire world had this happen to her. You know it, you were there, there’s no way you could have forgotten. And what did that teach you? Muggles don’t stick around, Harry.”

Harry sighed as he zoned out a bit, nodding and _hmm_ ing in the right spots to appease her. It wasn’t anything that surprised him – muggles run away, muggles get scared, the same old shit over and over again. He couldn’t help but be frustrated at the hypocrisy, the only reason that their race hadn’t died out was because Wizards had married muggles, his family wasn’t one of those pureblood mad families so why did this have to be such a big issue?

Harry’s attention was grabbed only when he heard her mutter, “Might as well just obliviate him.”

“Gems,” Harry scolded, scandalized. “I am not obliviating Louis. He doesn’t even know about me.”

“Well that’s the point, isn’t it Harry,” she said, her frustration obviously growing. “He doesn’t know about the biggest part of you. How can you possibly be in a relationship with someone you’re lying to?”

“I’m not lying to him,” Harry once again heard the childish tone to his voice, and he hated himself a little bit for it. “It just hasn’t come up yet.”

“And what are you going to do when it does, and he inevitably takes off?”

Harry had begun to nervously chew on his knuckle. The barmaid who had been quietly moving between their table and a few others now stopped in front of them hesitantly, sensing the argument that was taking place.

“I’m sorry loves, but if you’re not going to order anything-“

Gemma cut her off quickly, “We’re leaving, don’t worry.”

She unceremoniously rose from her chair and motioned for Harry to follow her, Harry’s head spinning from the rollercoaster conversation.

“Gem, please wait,” he called, jogging to catch up with her as she marched back into the throngs of people in Diagon Alley. “Gemma, please.”

Harry reached out to grab her elbow and yanked her into a small alcove between shops. The shoppers passing by them didn’t take a second look at the siblings, and Harry took a deep breath as he rubbed his face.

“I didn’t expect you to be so angry at me,” he mumbled behind his fingers, feeling heartbroken for a range of reasons, some of which he didn’t want to examine too closely at the moment.

Gemma slumped against the stone wall behind her, defeated, all the fight leaving her body.

“I can’t watch you have your heart broken, H,” she admitted quietly, no longer yelling. “I can’t do it. I won’t.”

The tears that Harry had managed to blink away earlier came rushing back, and he looked up into the bright sky to try and stave them off once more.

“He makes me so happy,” he admitted, his voice breaking at the end.

Gemma looked at him with furrowed brows, a sadness and concern etched onto her face for her little brother.

“I know, love,” she said gently, lowering her gaze down to the ground. “But I’m scared for you.”

Harry sighed, wiping away the stray tears that had fallen down his face.

“I just don’t know what to do.”

Gemma came closer to him, wrapping him in a hug and whispered against his hair, “I’m sorry H. I’m sorry I yelled.”

He returned her embrace and rested his cheek against the top of her head, exhaling heavily.

“I’m seeing him again tomorrow,” Harry admitted, and Gemma pulled back to look up at him. Instead of the angry expression from before, she now had a soft, sympathetic smile on.

“I’m just worried, Harry. I don’t think it’s a good idea,” Harry drew in a sharp breath, “but I know that you’ll figure it out.”

Harry was lost in thought, the sounds of Diagon Alley enveloping them in their secluded alcove. Gemma released her hold on him and went back to leaning against the wall, deep in thought herself. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of caramel colored hair and a familiar retreating figure, he instinctively turned to tuck himself more fully into the shadow of the alcove, his mind focusing on a single word - _Louis._   

“Shit,” he said, his heart was racing and he tried to focus on the surface of the stone wall in front of him, blood pounding in his ears. He took deep breaths trying to calm himself, his mind whirling with questions over what business could possibly bring a muggle into Diagon Alley. As his breathing evened out and his pulse began to slow a clarity washed over him, and he realized what an idiot he was being – there was no way that was Louis. Turning around to find a very confused Gemma, he poked his head out of the alcove and surveyed the area. The person whom he had confused with Louis was nowhere to be seen.

“What the fuck was that?” Gemma asked, confusion having completely replaced the sympathy from earlier.

Harry sighed once again, raking his hand through his hair and closing his eyes tightly as he answered.

“You might be right Gem,” he conceded.

\--

In the 24 hours or so in between leaving Diagon Alley and Harry’s date with Louis, he was proud to say he had only cried around three times. There wasn’t much he could do to clear his head, with the constant loop of arguments that were running through his mind: what was he doing with Louis? Was it really worth it? Would Louis just run away if he found out Harry was a wizard?

He had waited until about nine before he gave in and floo’d his mother. She listened intently, nodding her head in all the right places in the story as she sat comfortably in her living room and watched Harry’s head in the fireplace, being careful not to interrupt. In the end, she hadn’t given him much clarity one way or the other, but had suggested in a lovingly firm tone that while she knew he would figure out, could he please remember to protect his heart?

With nothing solved Harry tossed and turned all night, nodding off only in brief increments.

And now the time had come for another date with Louis, which had turned his emotions into a big oscillating mess. There was a huge part of him that dreaded it, dreaded the conversation he knew he was going to have to have – and yet he couldn’t stop the butterflies that formed in his gut every time he thought about the last time they were together. He wanted nothing more than to just pull Louis into his apartment, into his bedroom, locking the door and forgetting about everything that wasn’t Louis’ skin on his.

But he had decided that breaking things off with Louis was the smart thing to do. He wanted to believe that Louis would embrace him, keep him, no matter what, but it terrified him to think of the alternative. If Louis didn’t accept him, if he was fearful or thought Harry was crazy and tried to run away, Harry would have no choice but to erase his memories. This, more than anything, had been what Harry cried over – the thought of Louis never remembering him again, not knowing what they had together. And even though it shattered Harry’s heart to picture Louis’ face when Harry broke things off, he had steeled himself to do so.

At least, until Louis knocked on the door.

Harry’s heart lurched as his mind scrambled for any excuse to delay the conversation, but a minute later Louis knocked again and Harry shook himself out of his musings and walked over to the door.

Answering it, Harry’s carefully formulated plans went out the window. Louis was standing there in a semi-sheer black t-shirt and tight jeans. His smile was bright and genuine, revealing the crinkles around his eyes.

Harry breathed out, “Louis”, and yanked him inside by the elbow. Louis could only gasp a little in surprise at the sudden movement before Harry was kissing him deeply, his grasp transferring to Louis’ waist, holding onto him tightly and backing him up against the doorframe.

If Louis was surprised, his body didn’t show it, hands coming immediately up to Harry’s neck and returning the kiss in earnest. Louis moaned into Harry’s mouth, and Harry felt his stomach lurch once again.

He pulled back reluctantly and they both panted heavily into the small space between their mouths.

Louis huffed out a small laugh, “Hello to you, too Curly.”

Harry tried hard to smile back at him, but was unable to make it reach his eyes resulting in more of a grimace. Louis’ brows furrowed as he took in Harry’s face.

“Everything okay, love?”

Harry sighed heavily and closed his eyes.

“We need to talk.”

Harry didn’t wait for a reply, instead turning and guiding Louis to sit next to him on the couch with their hands intertwined. He could feel the tension in Louis’ hand, different from the usual ease their touches shared.

Harry couldn’t stand to meet Louis’ gaze, and he focused on his own feet as he said, “I just need to get this out.”

Without pausing long enough for Louis to question him, he launched into the prepared speech formulated in his sleepless hours the night before.

“You’re amazing Louis.”

“You’re amazing too,” Louis interrupted with a smile and a small squeeze of his hand, and Harry finally lifted his eyes to look at him. Louis looked cautiously optimistic, and Harry’s mind went a bit fuzzy, the speech he had meticulously planned vanishing from his brain.

“I, uh,” he stuttered. “I can’t-“

“What is it, love?”

Harry stood up from the couch and began pacing, raking a hand through his hair as unplanned words began to tumble out of his mouth.

“You’re amazing, and I haven’t even known you that long, but I can’t stop thinking about you. I fall asleep thinking about you. Thinking about having you in bed with me all the time.”

Whether it was Harry’s sudden shift off the couch or his obvious agitation, Louis remained silent. Harry could feel his eyes following him as he continued to pace the rug.

“And maybe I’m stupid because it’s only been a couple weeks, really, but you’re so special. I just want you to know that.”

He paused and finally made eye contact.

“You’re special, you know that right? I don’t want you to leave thinking I don’t think that.”

Louis’ confusion was evident at the almost frantic nature of Harry’s words.  

“You’re special too, Haz,” he ventured, clearly nervous he might say the wrong thing, his voice gentle the way you speak to a frightened animal you don’t want to spook.

Harry couldn’t stay on track when Louis was being so nice to him, though, and he resumed his frustrated back and forth journey.

“I just, I’m doing this so you don’t forget me.”

“Why would I forget you?”

Louis fought to keep his voice steady sensing Harry’s growing distress, though a note of panic began to creep in.

“I’m just- I’m doing this because it’s the only way I can preserve what we had.”

“Harry,” Louis said, his tone growing more firm, the gentleness wearing off as he tried to break through the agitation surrounding Harry. “You’re not making any sense. What is going on?”

Harry paused and took a deep breath, hands on his hips. Looking down at the ground, he steeled himself to try and announce their break up, but when he looked up Louis wasn’t looking at him anymore. Louis’ eyes had drifted to somewhere over Harry’s right shoulder, facing the hallway, and he had an unreadable expression on his face. Confused, Harry slowly turned his head to follow the gaze.

There, he saw the familiar gallery of his personal photographs, all of them moving – people walked in and out of frame casually, trees blew in the photographed wind, and even a dog that kept running in and out of frame chasing an unseen ball.

“Fuck,” Harry whispered, all his defenses shattered, his brain short-circuiting with what he should do. As he turned back around to face Louis, he blurted out, “I’m a wizard,” immediately regretting the words as soon as they had left his mouth.

Harry’s hand came up to his mouth as though that would cover up what he had just said. What was he thinking, blurting that out?  Louis expression had transformed into something almost comical, shock written across his every feature.

Across the living room, Louis had begun to murmur, “What? You can’t be serious” and was he chuckling a little to himself. Harry felt tears welling up, as his heart sank because this was the part where Louis called him crazy, told him there was no way that was true, left him forever.

And Harry had no choice anymore.

He slowly pulled his wand out from where he had it tucked into his waistband, and he heard Louis’ laughter pick up.

“Oh my god, Harry. What the fuck.”

Louis sounded so pleased, like Harry was pulling some elaborate prank on him. A few tears began to fall as Harry prepared to wipe his memory.

“I’m sorry Louis, I’m so sorry about this. I really think I was falling in love with you. I wish you could remember that part, at least.”

Louis’ face transformed from amused to concerned, and he started to reach into his own pocket. “Haz, wait, what are you doing?”

It took a second after Harry tried to cast the _obliviate_ charm that he realized it – Louis was now holding a wand.

And the spell had been blocked.

Harry and Louis stood frozen in place facing one another, wands held aloft in readiness, the silence around them all encompassing.

Louis was the first to break the quiet.

“Jesus Harry, what the fuck are you doing?”

Louis was breathing heavily as he lowered his wand, looking at Harry incredulously.

“What if I hadn’t had my fucking wand on me? You were going to obliviate me, are you fucking serious?”

Harry fish mouthed, trying to will his brain to catch up.  Finding himself unable to speak he walked over to the kitchen table and slowly sank into a chair, his elbows resting on his knees and his hand limply holding his wand.

“You’re- you’re a,” Harry couldn’t form sentences anymore and he blinked in confusion at Louis.

“Yeah, I’m a fucking wizard, Harry. And apparently, you’re a wizard too. And _apparently_ you were just going to erase my fucking memory.”

Louis was pacing the floor now, having taken up Harry’s prior position, his anger evident in the bite of his words and tension of his muscles.

“I’m- I’m so sorry,” Harry offered quietly. He couldn’t yet begin to piece together what was happening, but through the fog of his thoughts he was still able to recognize that Louis was upset and he wanted to fix it.

“Louis,” Harry said quietly, and Louis paused his pacing to look him in the face. “I’m so sorry, Lou. I was just so scared that you were going to run away, I panicked.”

Louis sighed and rubbed his face with his hands, obscuring his expression.

Harry stood from his chair, approaching Louis cautiously and continuing to talk.

“I meant what I said,” he paused, trying to gauge Louis’ reaction, but continued talking when there was none. “You’re amazing, and gorgeous, and sweet, and it broke my heart to think about losing whatever this is between us.”

Getting closer, he had to stop himself from reaching out to touch.

“And now I’ve gone and fucked it all up.” At this, Louis removed his face from his hands and looked at Harry, brows furrowed deeply. “I was so scared to lose you, and now it turns out you’re a wizard too,” Harry laughed humorlessly, “and I’m going to lose you anyway.”

Louis exhaled through his nose, lips in a tight line.

Quickly, he rose up onto tiptoes and pecked Harry on the cheek.

“We’re going to need some tea.”

\--

“I _knew_ that full bottle of Rebos was weird. I fucking knew it!” Louis slapped the table with his palm, as if proving a point.

Harry chuckled and shrugged, “Yeah, great minds I guess.”

They had been talking for about an hour, with Louis quickly admitting that he wasn’t actually that angry at Harry (mostly since he hadn’t succeeded in erasing Louis’ memory), as they began to untangle all of the events that had occurred leading up to that point.

Louis snapped his fingers as if remembering something.

“That’s why you have a bird cage in here,” he said, gesturing towards Hoodini’s empty cage. “I thought it was weird that it was empty, but I didn’t want to say anything. Thought maybe it had just died.”

Harry snorted, immediately covering his mouth with a hand in embarrassment.

“Oh my god, Louis.”

“I mean, what?” Louis held his hands up in a placating gesture. “Sorry,” he tacked on quickly.

Harry smiled at him brightly, “It’s okay. Hoodini is very much alive and well. Probably out hunting mice.”

Louis rolled his eyes fondly. “ _Hoodini_. You would.”

They fell into a comfortable silence, Harry mulling over the information they had both shared in the past hour. The misunderstandings, the ways they had both tried to cover things up, and details about their lives they had kept hidden – like what they both _actually_ did for a living.

Louis cleared his throat, “Um, there is one thing I wanted to ask you about.”

“Yeah, anything,” Harry said, reaching across the table to grab Louis’ hand. Louis smiled at the gesture and rubbed Harry’s thumb with his own.

“Before,” Louis started, clearing his throat nervously, “when you- when you were gonna, um-“

Harry groaned and covered his face with his free hand.

“You can say it,” he mumbled behind his fingers. “When I was going to obliviate you.”

Louis let out a short laugh, “Yeah, that. Um-“

Louis was fidgeting, tapping his fingers against the back of Harry’s hand. Harry took his free hand and enclosed Louis’ smaller one in both, calming his movements.

Louis rushed out, “You said you were falling in love with me.”

Harry felt his cheeks redden, and his body stilled completely. He looked down at his hands intertwined with Louis’ and bit his lip.

“Was that true?”

He glanced up at Louis’ voice and could only nod his head slowly. Louis lips quirked into a half smile, and he pulled his hand away from Harry’s in order to stand up from his chair. Wasting no time, he walked around and lightly pulled on the top of Harry’s chair until he got the message and scooted it away from the table, enough that Louis could sit on his lap facing him.

Louis ducked his head down to kiss into Harry’s mouth, his hands going immediately into Harry’s hair.

A moment later he pulled back breathlessly and said, “God I’m so glad we’re both wizards.”

Harry laughed, but Louis swallowed it into his mouth deepening the kiss until Harry melted into it.

Minutes passed, and their kisses began to slow, becoming something more comfortable, more familiar.

Louis snorted as if remembering something, and Harry made a noise of discontentment as Louis pulled away from the kiss once more and muttered between them, “It’s a really good thing you didn’t tell me accidentally and then overreact or do something stupid. Ya know, like try to erase my memory.”

Harry rolled his eyes as he gently caressed Louis’ hip where he was holding on it.

“How long are you going to hold that over my head?”

“Oh I don’t know,” Louis pretended to contemplate, tapping his lips as he looked up at the ceiling meaningfully. Staring back down into Harry’s eyes, he thumbed at his cheek. “I was thinking maybe, like, forever?”

The implication of Louis’ words wasn’t lost on Harry, and he fought to keep control of his face and the smile threatening to break free (however, he could do nothing about the kaleidoscope of butterflies now swirling around his stomach).

“Hmm,” Harry mused, tilting his head back in forth in mock consideration.

He stopped the movement to look deeply into Louis’ eyes, smiling softly at what he found reflected back at him there as he said, “I guess I could handle forever.” And he brought a hand up to Louis’ neck, drawing him into a deep kiss once more.

**Author's Note:**

> If you enjoyed this, please [reblog the fic post](https://letsjustsee.tumblr.com/post/161594129227/sweeter-than-wine-author-letsjustsee-word-count)!
> 
> And come say hi on [tumblr](http://letsjustsee.tumblr.com)!


End file.
